December 24, 2008

Christmas Craft: Letters to Santa Keepsake

As a child on Christmas eve, my uncle always gave me a special bag of "reindeer food." He told me that if I sprinkled the food around our house, the reindeer would be sure to stop by for a snack, guaranteeing that Santa would not miss my house or forget to leave presents under the tree. Walking around the perimeter of the house carrying a flashlight and scattering the food with my father is a fond memory, and I plan to carry this tradition on with my own children.

Another tradition I'd like to start is a Santa Letter Book-- a journal full of correspondence between Santa and the children. Here are directions on how to craft this memorable keepsake:

1. Use a hot glue gun to affix the name plate to the front of your journal or scrapbook.

2. Before your children go to sleep on Christmas Eve, ask them to help you write Santa a letter from the family. You may want to say thank you for the presents, wish him well on his travels and talk about exciting things that happened over the last year. Just be sure to add plenty of input from the kids-- even if it sounds a bit silly-- you'll be glad you did when you look back on the book years down the road.

3. Glue the completed letter into the book and have your children add scrapbook decorations and doodles to the page.

4. After the children go to bed, take out your special Santa stationery (personalized with his name) and write a response from old Saint Nick. Then, tuck the letter into the festive red envelope and use the personalized embosser to turn the gold, foil sticker into Santa's special seal.

5. Once the note is sealed, put the letter book on a table next to your Christmas tree and place Santa's note on top.

Your children will be thrilled when they find they've received a special note from the man in the red suit. Reading Santa's letter aloud on Christmas morning will be a ritual they look forward to year after year, and you'll be able to preserve memories of Christmases past within the binding of one very precious keepsake.